From the Fire Within: Zootopia
by Arctic-Bunny
Summary: Clark, a twenty-one year old goes on a camping trip and causes some burning trouble that lands him into the beautiful city of zootopia. To his dislike, there are no other humans around. Join him as he explores the world of Anthropomorphic animals, through action and adventure.
1. Is your Fire Out?

It was 7:35 am, and Clark was watching the local news. He had been planning on a camping trip for the past couple weeks and the presence of a forest fire was threatening him from going. "..With the forest fire on the fritz, campers should be wary about where they set up. The fire danger is on a high and no fires will be permitted up there." _Fires aren't allowed, but I can still camp!_ He thought as he raised his fist in the air triumphantly and cheered.

He quickly hopped off the couch and ran around to assemble his pack. Almost in the process knocking over some precious items. "Won't want anybody stealing my spot." he said quietly. Once the bag was quickly thrown together, he hurled the backpack on and hopped to the kitchen to grab some food. The kitchen was small compared to others. But, It had the bare minimum that a kitchen needed. Fridge, counters, stove that often burnt food, and a microwave which made the highest of delicacies. There a toaster too, but he made the mistake of using a fork to get toast out. Least to say, it was not a happy time for anyone. The kitchen fit into a nice corner of a small apartment. The living room was to the right of the kitchen. A single worn couch and a console with a few of my favorite games stood to fill the once empty space. Down the hall was his bedroom and a single bathroom. Truly a place fit for a king.

With his stuff in tow, he ran out the door while stuffing keys into his pocket and slipping on a pair of sneakers. The shoes were a bit rugged but were still nice. A pair of grey sneakers to go with his blue t-shirt and tan cargo shorts _. Not the best fashion in the world, but who cares I'm going camping!_ He quickly rushed to lock the door, but clumsily dropped the keys in the process. Clark reached down to grab them when all his food dropped to the ground. Apples and a few cans rolling all over the hall. He silently cursed and started to gather the groceries when someone stopped to help.

"Need a hand?" It was Sarah. She lived in the complex across from his and just so happens to be one of his best friends. "Sure." Clark replied as she bent down to help pick up the rest of the escaping goods. Once all were collected, and he locked the door and addressed Sarah. "Thanks for the help, I really appreciate it." He said checking his food

"I'm always happy to help a friend in need." She said happily. "I see that you're in a bit of a rush, where are you off too?"

"I am going camping this weekend. Just need a break from all this craziness that has been going on, Ya'know?" Sarah looked somewhat shocked. "You're going camping while the wildfire gets worse by the day?" He chuckled when she said that.

"Of course, no better time than in the summer. There are also no people up there because they're too chicken, and Mother Nature can throw whatever she wants at me, I'm still going." I said shaking my fist at nothing. they both laughed at his joke for a short time. "I am sorry to cut this conversation short but I really must get going." He said slightly jittery.

"Are you sure it's a good idea to go?" She asked with concern in her voice. "Wouldn't want you to get hurt up there." She said with a slight blush on her cheeks.

"I'll be fine, i'm not going up there for too long. So I should be back in no time"

"Just be careful, okay?"

"I will, see you around."

"See you.."

After the chat with Sarah, Clark left down the hall to the building's only elevator. It was old just as the building was, but still reliable. When the lift finally reached his floor, he stepped on and rode it all the way down to the bottom level.

Once the doors opened, he raced out of the front lobby doors and wandered through the parking lot to find his car. "There she is." he said as his ride peered around the corner. It was a small grey car. He had this car for the past 3 years and they had been through some great times together. he opened the back door and threw the pack inside. Slamming the door shut, he hopped to the driver side and turned the key. The engine guzzled and died away. He turned the key again, but this time hitting his right fist on the center of the console, she roared to life. Clark let out a sigh of relief. This frequently happened, and he didn't know why. But secretly, he liked it because it made him feel like Han Solo flying the Millennium Falcon. With the car started, he made his way out of the lot and down the road to the forest.

-Some Time Later-

Clark had been sitting in silence for a bit of his journey and decided to turn on some radio. He reached over and flipped through the channels he liked. He finally decided to settled on a Pop station which was playing Cake by the Sea at the time.

Time seemed to fly by as the ride went on. Tall building turning to rural flats of the countryside. Soon even the woods were upon him, he gazed upward at the tall trees. A car horn from behind broke Clark's trance from the wilderness around him. Slightly startled, he sped up to get out of the other person's way.

Clark became giddy with happiness as the campsite approached his view. But to his disappointment, found a family had already set up shop at that site. He grew frustrated as he had worked so hard to get this time off. He worked many hours overtime and kissed so much ass to get this weekend off for camping and it was gone, just like that.

However, all was not lost for Clark had a backup site in mind. "It is a little farther out, and much more secluded than this one, but it will do." he thought as he continued down the road. It took him a little over an hour to get there, and found it to be completely empty. "Yes" he huffed.

He drove down a small slope towards the plain, and parked in a nice shady area close to a few trees. It was a small site and it had been rarely used at all. Clark turned off his car and got out to survey the area. It was a grassy field cluttered in with trees. The boundaries of the grounds were marked by the spacing trees. In the middle of the clearing was a small fire ring, it was a little overgrown with small grass poking through the rocks, along with a few flowers.

Turning back to the car, Clark set out to unload his gear. Taking in a deep breath of that fresh woodsy air gave him a relaxed vibe. It wasn't much longer until a decent camp was set up. His tent was set up a little ways away from the pit, to hopefully gather some heat from a fire during the night. A stove and table were set up to serve as a kitchen for the next few days. During Clark's arrival, it had been decently quiet with the occasional shuffling of gear and local wildlife. The silence was broken by a rather loud rumbling and groaning. Clark looked about timidly to find the source. The sound happened again and it was right below where he stood. Looking down, he found only his stomach to be growling for food. With a small chuckle and a breath of relief, he halted the monster through a classic PB and J sandwich. Nothing beats hunger quite like those do. Satisfied with the camp that surrounded him, he began scouring the area for firewood. He found a decent amount of sticks and a few logs nearby. Not being a wuss, he manned up and brought all the wood in one trip.

Back at camp, he set them in a nice pile near by and began looking for his axe. After minutes of searching, he found it leaning against a tree. Clark picked up the ax and felt up the old wood.

"Even after all these years dad, your ax still holds together." he said remembering older times. Swinging it to his shoulders he prepared to hit a log. When it was steady, Clark took aim and brought the axe upward, then brought it down with as must force he could muster. The log made a splintering noise as it split in two. Not out of breath just yet, he grabbed another and broke it as well.

While he split the wood, he thought of work at home. His friends, and what was left of his family.

He lost sense of my surroundings, focusing more on his life till now. He had a nice childhood, not too much crazy till his mother passed away. She was a nice woman from what he could remember of her. He was only eight or nine when she left him and their Father. When that happened, the biggest punch was on his Father. He raised and cared for Clark best he could, but it was too much for him to handle.

At age 13, Clark was alone and forced to live with his Aunt for the rest of his days. Sarah was the only friend he had during these tough times. She seemed to be the only one that cared for him at all. All the other students left good ole Clark to his business and he never broke that bubble.

But Sarah, she always popped out and asked how he was, how his day was so far, and other likenesses. Everytime he saw her, he felt a warm feeling in his chest. But as time went on, began to separate and grow distant. But they always managed to bump into each other here and there. She seemed so nervous every time they met. Always red faced and trying to hide it by covering her face with her long brown hair.

That was eight years ago and Clark was a man now. Caring for himself, providing shelter and food however he could manage. Even spoiling himself here and there, It was a good life. He lost focus and gain consciousness of his surroundings as the last log was split. It was beginning to get dark now and was also getting chilly.

"Had I really been cutting wood for that long?" He could now feel his arms burning and despite a wild fire nearby, could feel the cold air pick at his sweaty forehead. Walking over to his tent, he grabbed out a hoodie to push out the seeping cold. Making a quick decision, he started a small fire to push away the night and hopefully warm his tent for the night.

It took a few minutes to gather the proper wood and materials from his wood pile necessary for a fire. Once all the supplies were assembled inside the ring, he took out a pair of flint and steel strikers. With his aching arms and hands, he started to strike the two together to create sparks. Within a few seconds a small flame was visible. Clark was the best fire builder he new of, self-taught through books and asking his dad for help. He waited for it to catch the rest of the dry grass found nearby; helping it when he could.

After a few moments a decent fire was started. Clark could feel the warmth from it and it felt good. Occasionally he walked away from the warm fire into the outskirts of its heat to grab some sticks to fuel it. He sat in silence looking around. The feeling of being watched flowed through his body. The only source of heat and light around that wasn't natural was of his fire, of course animals would come by and check it out. Standing up and with a stretching yawn, he grabbed the dirt bucket prepared beforehand and began dumping all the dirt onto the fire. There was no more dirt in the bucket and only a few coals were left alive. "Meh, they will die out on their own." he said as he turned to the warm tent.

With a final yawn and a happy smile, he let sleeps warm grasp take hold and drift him off to sleep.

However, Clark did not know that one of his stick was placed just a little too close to his fire pit, and soon caught on fire. Later lighting nearby grass aflame, and the rest of his cut wood.


	2. A life for Another

Clark awoke in a pretty good mood, he had never slept this good in days. With a yawn and stretch he sat up. Clark was pouring in his own sweat. _Thank goodness I slept with minimal clothes on._ He slid out of the bag and with a grunt, reached over to his pack for some clothes. Clark decided to put on jeans, a blue flannel shirt, and a pair of running shoes. Seeing as it was super hot out, he rolled up his sleeves to let air on his arms. Grabbing his phone, he checked the time. Clark became deathly still once he saw the time.

3:25, Sunset wasn't for another three hours. It looked to be midday outside, even brighter! He fumbled with the zipper to see why it was this bright out. He poked his head out to a sight of pure horror. Everything was burning. Every stick, tree, and plant in the area was set ablaze. _Smokey is not going to be happy about this._ He had to get out of here before he got hurt, or worse. running over to his car, he patted himself down for the keys to the car.

"The only other place would be…" He spun around to his tent and bolted inside hoping to not stay long inside. It was now boiling hot and he was starting to panic. Fumbling through his pack, he finally found the keys. Jumping out, he raced for the car. He reached for the door handle and grabbed it only to yell out in pain. The car door handle was extremely hot.

Looking for another option, he used his shirt to grab the door handle. The burns were not so effective with the shirt in place. With much effort, he got the door open and hopped inside. It was surprisingly not an oven inside. Clark was thankful that someone gave him seat covers for his leather seats. He reached out to close the door, but a huge snapping noise stalled him. He looked up to see a falling tree branch. It came down with all its might upon the car door and ripped it right off. The branch spit embers and bark in his face.

Putting the key into ignition, he heard it sputter and then quickly roar to life. The car too sounded scared and anxious to escape the huge flames. Hitting the gas, he sped out of the camp and straight for the road. Clark felt as if he were in some action movie. If felt cool to dodge fallen trees and avoid flames but he was also dead terrified. The road could be seen just up ahead and his way to safety. Clark just about turned up to the road when he heard a child cry out.

He looked out his new full car door window to see the camp that he would have stayed at. There was a young boy trying to escape the campsite but was failing. He was crying, and looking around desperately. Clark had a choice, he could go for the road and leave this boy to escape for himself, or he could go in and help him. He new what he had to do and turned the car straight for the camp.

He burst out from some trees, gaining some air, and landing a little ways from him. "HEY!" he called out. "Come on, come this way!" the boy turned his head towards Clark tears streaming down his face, then to a fallen tree. Clark looked where he was looking to see a human arm sticking out from underneath.

 _Oh geez, I need to get him out of here._ He got out of his car and ran over to the boy attempting to quickly console him. "I couldn't save her..." He said "I tried but I couldn't do it." He was covered in dirt and blood. Clark looked him in the eyes "It's going to be okay. You did your best." he said trying to calm him. "Come on, we need to get out of here." The boy hesitated before slowly standing up. They quickly walked over to the car and got in. Quickly driving for the road.

The fire was worse than before. Flames reaching far above the tree line. Clark concentrated on getting them to safety. He had no idea what to do with the boy, but survival was the most important thing. "He still looks freaked out, I needed to calm his nerves somehow. Let's start with the basics." He thought "Hey kid, what's your name?" He yelled over the roaring car. He was silent for a moment before he answered.

"Ethan. W-what's yours?" He asked. _Good, he is continuing the conversation._

"Clark, nice to meet you." he replied trying to keep concentration on the path ahead. "Were going to die out here aren't we?" Ethan said grimly

Clark ,not wanting to upset him further, put on a brave face and looked into the rear view mirror "Not if I have anything to say about it." Ethan replied with a moment of silence.

"T-thank you for saving me back there. I don't know what I would have done." He started to go off. The road a ways ahead, escape was in sight "I am just glad you found me, if you didn't I don't think I would be here anymore."

"Nothing to worry about. But hey…" He was cut short as a tree came crashing down on the hood of the car.

Clark groaned as the car settled in its final stop "Hey Ethan, are you okay?" He too groaned and rubbed his head. "Yeah you?"

"Yeah, but I think our ride is done for. We'll need to run." He got out and held up his arms to ward off the flames. Clark helped Ethan out of his car and started to run. They kept pace through the forest. Dodging trees and burning grasses all the while being burnt and scratched. An unusual sound caught their ears, it was the sound of water splashing and the chopping of helicopter blades.

"This way!" He yelled to Ethan. They came to a small clearing to see a helicopter with a water bucket trying to put out the fire. They yelled and swung their arms around to signal the pilot. They saw a little head poke out and soon the helicopter came down just far enough to where they could climb in the bucket.

The bucket was not built for people to climb into, it was designed to haul water back and forth to extinguish the fires. "Okay Ethan, we are getting out of here. We are going to get in the bucket for the pilots to fly us out!" He yelled. Ethan nodded as Clark helped him inside. Ethan took a quick look around and figured out there was room for only one. Before he could do anything, Clark waved to the pilots to take off. The pilots didn't respond at first, seeming to be thinking of a way to retrieve Clark. THe bucket could only withstand one person and they couldn't land because of the flames. After a few moments the helicopter began to rise and take to the sky. Ethan was really upset, crying and reaching out for him to come with.

"You have to come with us, there must be some way!" Clark felt tears build up beneath his eyes at the way he was acting. Before he knew it, they were gone and Clark had been left to die.

It finally hit him. He was going to die in this forest. He stood there processing his decision to be left behind, and regretted it. He was going to die, but he did save someone far younger than him. Ethan still had a full life to live. Clark no longer regretted his to choice stay, from the thought of saving others.

He looked around and saw some deer running. Looking in the direction the deer went, he saw more animals.

"If a lot of them are running somewhere that means safety! I can survive!" he thought hopefully. With all he could give, he ran in the same direction the animals went.

The fire was extremely intense now. He could feel his hair starting to singe from the heat. Clark soon caught up with the wildlife and they didn't seem to care that he was there. He could see a plenty of animals. Wolves, Foxes, Deer, Rabbits, Raccoons, and all sorts of birds. They were all here, running to safety.

As they were running, a lake appeared through the tree line. A small island was in the center of the lake filled with animals. A huge snap echoed around the forest and he saw a tree falling down. Clark ran as fast as he could to out run it. But only succeeded in running into its path. It came down on him with full force. Clark hit the ground hard, knocking his breath out. Shakily looking up, he saw the lake edge a few feet away. It was a miracle that he was still alive from the impact, but if he stayed under the tree for long, he would not live t tell the tale. He squirmed about and tried to get some leverage out. He quickly felt the weight adding to his body. The fire burnt his back and was tearing inside him.

He screamed out for help, but only got the chattering of animals and the flickering of nearby flames to answer the call.

Time slowed as he felt everything around him. The animals, plants, and the whole planet. The beauty of this planet and all its life it brought. Clark coughed and began to cry. He was stuck underneath this tree for the rest of his life. Clark had wanted to live a full life. He hoped to get a nice job, retire, maybe even get married, and die of old age. Now he could never fulfill his dreams.

He felt a small pressing on my arm, It felt small and fluffy. Clark opened his eyes to see a small rabbit with its paw on his forearm. Looking around a little more, he saw a small circle of animals staring at him. Everything soon had a lighter tone to it. Everything was growing brighter by the second. Instead of the fear he should have felt, he felt safe and happy.

Everything slowly faded from view and blurred out of focus. Clark soon felt extremely tired and closed his eyes to fall in sweet sleeps grasp.

Clark felt ground underneath him once again. Slowly, he opened up his eyes to find himself inside an alley, leaned up against a brick wall. He shakily stood up and wobbled to the street, using the walls as support.

Out from the alley was a street filled with blurry people. Clark rubbed his eyes and his vision cleared to see that these were not ordinary people, but animals standing on two legs. Walking and talking like people would. "Where am I?"


	3. Gotta go Fast!

No animal paid attention to him as they passed by. He stood at the entrance to the alley and stared at the creatures. Never before had he seen anything like them! The only species he new of that could stand and use technology was that of his own. He was frightened at first, but curiosity soon overcame fear. Gaining more trust in his legs, he started to walk down the sidewalk.

Looking around, everything seemed bigger. The sidewalks, buildings and roads all seemed to have been bumped up ten sizes. An assortment of differently sized cars flowed through the streets. Each car had a different pattern across it, as if to signify what animal would be inside. Tall cars with spots for giraffes, medium sized cars for tigers or wolves. Even small rodents had toy like cars just for them driving near the gutters.

As he continued to walk down the streets, he noticed a small circle of space between himself and the closest of animals. It was as if there was a small force field around his body and no animal could pass through. Clark began to feel uneasy as more of the animals eyes stared at him with disgust. A small cub curiously made his way towards him but the mother shrieked and pulled him quickly away, quickening their current pace.

Off in the distance police sirens could be heard loudly wailing through the streets. "It's only an officer doing their job" he thought "certainly they aren't coming for me. Right?" he had started to walk faster without realizing, the small space around him grew larger as it opened into a plaza like area with a park in the middle.

A cold sweat started to form as the sirens drew near. Suddenly the sirens stopped and the sound of car doors opening filled his ears. Clark turned around to see a black and white car parked down a ways. The car itself was pretty intimidating. It was as if someone had combined a typical cop car and a monster truck, and decided to give it racing stripes to add to the effect.

Out of the monster car hopped a small rabbit and an fox, they looked around until they saw him. The rabbit said something to the fox, then to a radio it pulled out of its belt. Feeling more nervous than ever, he quickly made my way into the park without looking suspicious. Which was very hard mind you!

Clark stopped underneath a tree that was near the rear of the park and took a breath to calm his nerves and regain his mind. He sighed and leaned against the tree next to him.

"Uh… hhello there sir."

He opened my eyes to see the small rabbit from earlier. She had light grey fur over her whole body and long ears pointing straight up. Her eyes were a beautiful purple that could hold gazes forever. She also had on a blue police uniform that was worn proudly. She seemed very nervous from what I could tell.

"My name is Officer Judy Hopps and this is my partner Nick." She said as the Fox walked over to where they were. Nick looked at him unknowingly, almost studying him. "What is your name sir?"

"Uh, my name is Clark" He replied trying to play it cool

"Nice to meet you Clark." she says in a chipper tone "So, we had a few calls about a strange person in the area, and a few mammals felt in danger for their children. We would like you to come with us to answer some questions and clear some minds."

Now, Clark could go with them and answer their questions like he should, or say no and figure what happens from there. "Could I say no?" he thought "They are officers after all, what could they do if I say no? Best to go with them and not travel down the other path."

"Sure, I will go with you." Judy face lit up and it nearly gave Clark a heart attack. She was the cutest thing he had ever seen.

"Great! Our cruiser is just over this way." she said walking out of the park. Clark quickly followed suit.

"Hold up," Nick started to say "I know everybody in this place, and I have never seen anyone like you before. Where you from, also what are you exactly?"

Judy quickly turned to Nick "Nick, you can't just ask someone what they are! That's rude!"

"I know that, but the question was coming either way and I know you were wondering the same thing." Nick replied

"Still, you can't just…" Judy and Nick continued their little argument without allowing him to answer.

As they made their way to the car, Clark could hear someone yelling another's name. "Jason!" looking around, he saw a panther shuffling through the crowd looking around wildly. "Jason!? Where are you?" The man seemed to be in distress.

"Dad?" On the other side of the street was a small boy with a red balloon. Without looking, Jason crossed the street. Clark looked up the street and saw an oncoming car that showed no signs of stopping. Without thinking Clark ran after Jason in an attempt to save him. "Jason NO!" The father tried to push the crowd out of the way, but could not make his way through.

"Clark where are you going?!" Judy asked shocked

Clark was almost to Jason, to cover ground quickly, he jumped at Jason to grab hold of him. As he jumped, a flash of light caused him to close his eyes. He was barely able to grab him, but made it just in time to get in the way of the car. The car hit and it hit hard. He felt the ground hit and he tumbled down the street a little ways. He was badly hurt, scraped all over and body aching, but still conscious. He lay on the ground out of breath about to pass out when he felt a little movement in his arms. He opened his eyes to see the panther cub unharmed in his arms.

"Jason!" The father was able to break free from the crowd and run over to where they lay. "Dad!" Jason said frightfully. The Father picked up Jason and held him tightly. He looked down at Clark with amazement. "Thank you… Thank you so much!"

"Don't mention it" Clark said with a little raspy voice. All of the sudden the world was dizzy and he felt a warm trickle down his forehead.

"Clark!" Judy yelled "We called for an ambulance, it's on its way!" She was kneeling next to him addressing his forehead best she could. A siren was heard nearby as Clark looked into Judy's face. From everything that happened, he should feel afraid downright terrified. He did not feel these feelings however. Instead he felt safe, happy, and warm. Warm probably from the blood, but that did not bother him. Clark stared into Judy's eyes, "for being a rabbit, she was pretty good looking." he thought

The ambulance's siren halted, and Clark was lifted into the vehicle, to be carried away for medical attention.

Author's Note: Hooray for Edits! Hi, it's me! As it is the holidays, I thought to myself "Hm, what would be a good way to celebrate?" and the answer? A whole story revised! That should do it! SO for the holidays, here is the revision the story so far. I hope you enjoyed it! Leave a comment on how you think the story is so far, and what you liked and disliked. Any type of criticism helps me write this story better. Also, if you have ideas for future chapters, PM me and let me know! Who knows? Your idea might just be picked.

Anyways, I hope you guys like the story so far and have Happy Holidays as well as a Happy New Year!


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